Assembly Elections: Brisk Polling

In Mysuru district, there are 24,93,407 voters who are exercising their franchise at 2,860 polling booths to decide the fate of 147 candidates.  Voting will conclude at 6 pm.

Polling began at a brisk pace in city where early morning voters queued up before the polling stations on time. However, in rural areas, there were no voters at most of the booths till about 7.30 am. Voting gradually picked up in city and rural areas and by 11 am, the percentage touched 19.43 percent. At 1 pm, Mysuru recorded an overall polling percentage of 35.78. In Mysuru district, Nagavala booth recorded the highest voting percentage of 20.43 percent till 9 am.

Election Commission (EC)has said that the State has witnessed heavy polling and the trend is better compared to that of 2013 polls. Officials said that the increase in voting percent can be attributed to a series of voter awareness campaigns by the EC and District Administrations.

In city areas, the main thoroughfares in the usually busy streets wore a deserted look as voters lined up before the polling booths to cast their votes. Long queues were seen at around 11 am in many booths, and the city areas were neck-and-neck in terms of turnout with other rural areas.

Karnataka has over 4.96 crore voters who will exercise their right to choose their representatives from over 2,600 candidates. While there are over 2.52 crore male voters, there are around 2.44 crore women and 4,552 transgender voters.

It is a three-cornered contest between BJP, Congress and JD(S). The State will elect a new Assembly on May 15. A political party requires 112 seats to attain simple majority. While the Congress and the BJP are considered to be the key players, former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda’s JD(S) is likely to play the kingmaker, according to several surveys and opinion polls.

QUEUE STATUS

This was the first time when voters could know the status of queue through a mobile application. Also, it is for the first time, EVMs displayed the photos of the candidates next to their symbols. The election is a tough battle between the two popular parties as Karnataka has not seen a single party win two successive terms since 1985.

DELAY IN POLLING

Initially, there were reports about delay in polling due to some technical issues in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). Faulty EVMs were replaced immediately by the election officers at many booths. Delay was also due to lack of knowledge of the polling staff about operating the EVM and connecting it to the Control Unit and the Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trial (VVPAT) machines.

Many voters complained that they had to wait for over 45 minutes to exercise their democratic right though they arrived at the polling booth at 7 am. At booth Number 196 in Ramakrishnanagar, the EVM conked off and there was a delay in voting. However, the machine was replaced later. Some voters in Yadavagiri complained that votes had been cast already in their names.

Along with the voters, candidates and the city’s who’s who turned up for voting early. In Narasimharaja, candidate and Minister Tanveer Sait came to the polling booth along with their family and cast his vote. In Chamaraja, Vasu cast his vote. Likewise, MP Pratap Simha, his wife Arpitha Simha, Krishnaraja candidate S.A. Ramdas, Suttur Seer Sri Shivarathri Deshikendra Swamiji, Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa, Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Swamiji, Pramoda Devi Wadiyar, Yaduveer Krishnadatta Chamaraja Wadiyar were among the early voters.

Chamundeshwari MLA G.T. Devegowda’s family was the first to vote at Gungral Chatra booth. Here, the MLA is seeking re-election and is pitted against his one-time friend Chief Minister Siddharamaiah. The family arrived at the booth before the voting began and G.T. Devegowda’s wife Lalitha was the first person to vote followed by the MLA and his daughter Yeshoda.

The MLA’s wife took objection to the placing of the EVM in a dark place. She suggested to the polling booth Presiding Officer to shift the EVM to a better place where there is ample light. She said that voters may not see the candidates to indicate their choice. Accepting her suggestion, the Presiding Officer shifted the machine near the window.

SENIOR CITIZENS VOTE

Senior citizens took part in the voting process enthusiastically. They were brought to the voting booths by the relatives till the doorstep and from there, they were guided by the Polling Officials. Booths had special arrangements of wheelchairs to take the physically challenged to the booths. Most of the booths had nurses to take care of the aged in case they fell ill.

At all polling booths, party workers were seen assisting the voters to figure their names in the voters list. Seated 200 metres ahead of booths, party agents of all political parties were helping out the voters and there was a unique camaraderie between them despite being from different political parties.

Thanks to the increased interest in voting and the high-stake battle between political parties, rural voters were ferried to the polling booths in cycles and two-wheelers. Workers toiling in mango orchards at Nagavala, Hosa Hundi and surrounding areas were brought to the polling booths by party workers.

VVPAT MACHINES APPRECIATED

VVPAT machines used across all booths received appreciation from the voters as they could see the voted slip for 7 seconds in the screen of the machine before it disappeared inside the machine. First time voters told Star of Mysore that they were excited to see the voter slip displayed after they cast their votes. “The machines are better as we get to see which candidate and party we have voted for after we press the button,” Shruthi, a first-time voter said.

GENDER EMPOWERMENT

For the first time, all-woman polling booths have been established across the State. Called ‘Sakhi,’ these pink booths are those fully managed by women officers. Pictures of women staff dressed in pink clothing adorn the booths. The Police staff here too are women. There are women medical staff too, equipped with necessary first aid material and ORS packs.

In some pink booths, voters are greeted with roses. There are ‘selfie booths’ too in these premises. The idea is to encourage more voters to cast their ballot without fail. Model and Green booths were also set up where free saplings were distributed to all those who voted. Saplings included jamun fruit, guava, jackfruit, curry leaf and mango.

SHORTAGE OF KSRTC BUSES

Passengers moving from one place to another in city and sub-urban commuters had a harrowing time this morning as there was a severe shortage of KSRTC buses. Earlier, the KSRTC officers had stated that there will be no dearth of buses as they had made alternative arrangements like double shifts and extra trips.

However, the ground reality was different today as passengers had to wait for hours together for buses. Passengers were seen waiting at the bus stands, Yelwal, Paduvarahalli, Kuvempunagar, KRS Road, Hootagalli, Hinkal and Ramakrishnanagar. Though a handful of buses were operating inside the city, several schedules were missed and passengers were complaining.